Safety net for Fla. school grades may get extended

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CLEARWATER, Fla. -- Florida may be keeping a safety net provision that kept more than 150 schools from getting an F grade this year.

Interim Education Commissioner Pam Stewart said Tuesday that state officials will discuss in October whether to keep in place a rule that would limit a school grade from dropping more than one letter at a time.

This "temporary" rule was first adopted in 2012 but the State Board of Education narrowly voted to keep it intact for this year. If the board were to vote yes it means the rule would be in place for grades handed out next summer.

Each year the state hands out A-to-F grades that are used to reward top schools and sanction those that get failing marks.